Hiring freeze imposed to reduce fiscal deficit

Yuba College is facing a hiring freeze that will be in effect until the end of the 2001-02 fiscal year (June 30, 2002). According to Fusako Yokotobi, Director of Personnel Services & Human Resources Development, the hiring freeze seeks to address the college’s estimated $3.5 million deficit. The Business Services office is still analyzing figures to arrive at an exact deficit amount, but according to Michael Dencavage, Assistant Superintendent / Vice President of Business Services, the hiring freeze will help save the college money. How much money is unknown, and the Business Services office will not know the exact fiscal effect of a hiring freeze for another few months. However, according to Dencavage, “Those savings would go into the ending balance, which will become next year’s beginning balance.”When asked if any departments were being affected by the freeze, Yokotobi replied that classified, faculty as well as administrative positions are being affected. Two administrative positions not being affected are that of the Vice President of Instruction and President/Superintendent. Annette Lambson, Vice President of Instruction, will retire at the end of this semester and be replaced by a “rent-a-dean,” a temporary Vice President of Instruction (see front page story on Lambson’s retirement). President Epler also recently announced his retirement, which will begin in January of 2002. His position will be filled, despite the hiring freeze that will continue until the end of June that year.According to Yokotobi, some exceptions to the hiring freeze will be made. If a hiring supervisor feels that an exception should be made, he or she must submit a request, justifying the exemption by addressing the following criteria: 1) Impact of full-time equivalent student (FTES) enrollment; 2) Impact on direct services to students; 3) Whether there is an existing employee that could be moved into this position; 4) The collateral impact of leaving the position vacant (for example, a vacancy may leave other positions with limited work or may result in additional expense in other areas); 5) What duties remain essential and what available work force must take on those activities (which may require adjustment to existing job descriptions pursuant to review by their respective bargaining units); 6) The budgetary impact of the vacant position; 7) The need to continue the program; and 8) The liability for non-performance or inability to meet program administrative requirements.”If there is any effect on the current staff,” said Yokotobi, “we will negotiate the impact with the respective unions.” Requests for exceptions will be routed through the appropriate budget manager. The President’s Executive Staff (PES) will approve or disapprove of any exceptions to the hiring freeze. Whenever PES meets, it reviews the positions that are requested for exception. Requests that are approved, according to Yokotobi, are circulated to leaders of the shared governance groups. Afterwards, the college recruits personnel.A close look at Yuba College staffing practices over the past seven years reveals recruitment primarily of classified and administrative personnel, with minor changes in the number of full-time faculty. Statistics provided by the Personnel Office of Yuba College reveal a 37.3 percent increase of classified staff district-wide from 1994/95 to 2000/01. Over the same seven years, administrative personnel have increased by 34.8 percent district-wide.These numbers provide a striking contrast to the 5.5 percent increase in district full-time faculty over the same seven-year period. The Marysville campus has actually seen a 3.7 percent decline in faculty, losing four faculty over the last seven years.